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mischievous

adjective

ˈmis-chə-vəs How to pronounce mischievous (audio)
Definition of mischievousnext
1
as in wicked
tending to or exhibiting reckless playfulness the children had been so mischievous that we had to pay the babysitter extra and then clean up the mess

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in naughty
engaging in or marked by childish misbehavior punished for their mischievous tricks on the neighbors

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in dangerous
causing or capable of causing harm mischievous gossip that ruined a good teacher's reputation

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of mischievous Isaiah’s aunt, Charlene, said in court this week that her 8-year-old nephew was mischievous, often sneaking food in the middle of the night. — Rebecca Ellis, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026 Elle Fanning stars as a wickedly mischievous Catherine, with Nicholas Hoult in the dual role of her husband, the petulant manchild Emperor Peter III, and his body double, Yemelyan Pugachev. — Will Harris, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Sep. 2026 Palestinian children could be ordinary children—bored, mischievous, happy, alive. — Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2026 Adopted by its mischievous residents, the young men find coaches, cheerleaders and family, discovering that belonging matters more than winning. — Diana Lodderhose, Deadline, 8 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for mischievous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mischievous
  1. wicked
  2. naughty
  3. dangerous
  4. playful
  5. bad
  6. harmful
  7. impish
  8. adverse
Adjective
  • Both family and colleagues spoke about her generosity, her friendship with every major designer on both sides of the Atlantic, her love of food, cats and fast cars, and a wicked sense of humor and strong tennis game.
    — Lisa Lockwood, Footwear News, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Both our indignation when the wicked flourish and our sorrow when the righteous suffer have their source in this assumption.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of wicked
Adjective
  • The film’s naughty, not-quite-PG side is perfectly exemplified by its titular hero.
    — Marta Balaga, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Romantic, criminal and naughty hijinks ensue and bonds are tested — and ultimately reinforced.
    — Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of naughty
Adjective
  • Wickline came on as an increasingly flustered Anthropic CEO, Dario Amodei, who’s explaining why AI is dangerous without taking any responsibility for that.
    — Rima Parikh, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2026
  • The slow-moving storm, which killed a New York City housing authority worker when a tree fell Saturday, was expected to linger through Sunday with heavy rain, strong winds and dangerous surf all the way to New England.
    — Leah Willingham, Los Angeles Times, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of dangerous
Adjective
  • The Aries Full Moon activates your playful 5th house, bringing creativity, romance, self-expression, or a personal passion into sharper focus.
    — Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Social and playful 694 faces Katmai Brady Bunch member 620, while two bears that overcame incredible odds, 610 and 89 (Backpack), vie for votes in the other first round fight.
    — Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of playful
Adjective
  • This problem will only get worse, with new cancer cases projected to increase 67% by 2050.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 25 Sep. 2026
  • In a world where true-crime shows of both the fictional and nonfictional variety run rampant on our screens, that’s probably not a bad corporate strategy.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of bad
Adjective
  • Neon plans a 2027 theatrical release under the Creative Commons license for the open-source horror film based on a fictional secretive organization that keeps supernatural items and other harmful entities away from the public.
    — Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Executives from six major AI companies signed a one-page document pledging to monitor their models and prevent harmful uses such as hacking.
    — Brittney Melton, NPR, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of harmful
Adjective
  • The models in the film, meanwhile, run the spectrum from docile to diva — including Evangelista, who’s entreating the camera with an impish smile even while having a little fit backstage.
    — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 25 Sep. 2026
  • And yet the movie’s central storyline hints at writer-director Bassam Tariq’s inclination to subvert his own brooding-antihero saga, allowing room for unpredictability and the slightest whiff of impish irreverence.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of impish
Adjective
  • Of those, several found modest associations linking the mother’s use of her phone with adverse measures of fetal growth.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Mac Haddow, with the American Kratom Association, said the FDA and states that have banned kratom are conflating the natural product with synthetic and chemically manipulated ones, which are associated with adverse effects and even deaths.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of adverse

Browse Nearby Words

mischiefs
mischievous
mischievousness
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Cite this Entry

“Mischievous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mischievous. Accessed 1 Oct. 2026.

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